Reality of Love
by LunaLu23
Summary: **NEW SUMMARY!** This is what would have happened if Bella had more sense and a little help making her choice between Edward and Jake. This story starts in Chapter 4 of Eclipse and continues from there. Happy Reading!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello everybody! This is my first fanfiction so I hope you like it. I'm sorry in advanced for any spelling or grammatical errors.**

** Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters, setting, and some plot points from Stephanie Meyer's Twilight Saga. I do not own Twilight – even though I wish I did ;). This story is for entertainment purposes only and not apart of the official series. Thank you Stephanie Meyer for creating such a wonderful saga. I am sad to see the movies end – especially with very little of the wolf pack, which is the best part. **

I knew that today was going to be a long day when i woke up and didn't feel a cold body next to mine. Instead, I found a note where Edward was supposed to be:

_My dearest Bella,_

_ Alice said that it was going to be nice out today and because there hasn't been anything going on with Victoria, Jasper and I decided to go hunting. But please my love, be careful, and take care of my heart - I've left it with you._

Great - now the only thing going on today is my morning shift at Newton's Outfitters and then helping Angela fill out her graduation announcements that her mom is making her fill out by hand.

Realizing that I will be late for work if I don't leave soon motivates me to get up and start my day. I don't have enough time to eat my normal breakfast - Cheerios - So instead, I grab a Strawberry Pop-Tart on my way out the door and hit the road.

When I get to Newton's I put on my hideous orange vest that has my name embroidered on it in green from behind the counter.

"G'morning Mrs. Newton." I said. She and Mike seemed to be in a heated discussion about Mike's grades and him not being able to go some party tonight. I knew Mike would be embarrassed if I saw him get in trouble so I wanted to pull the attention away from him.

Mrs. Newton, who had had her back facing me, turned around with a look of surprise on her face. " Bella, what are you doing here?" After seeing the look of confusion on my face, she turned toward Mike again. " Mike, didn't you tell Bella not to come in today because Katie was coming in." Katie was the girl that was going to replace me this summer once I stopped working here after graduation. And on days that Mrs. Newton didn't think would be busy, she would bring in Katie to train her. But because they can't afford to have both of us working at the same time, Katie usually takes my shift.

"Oh, right, I forgot." I lied. I actually had no clue but I didn't want Mike to get into anymore trouble thana he was already in. "Well, I'll just see you tomorrow then. " Mike smiled gratefully at me.

So, I pulled off my vest and put it back on the hook before heading out to my truck. As I made my way out to my beloved Chevy, I noticed a flier stuck under my windshield:

SAVE THE OLYMPIC WOLF

Under the caption was a picture of a wolf howling at the moon on the edge of a cliff. The drawing reminded me of my wolf that runs under the night sky and protects the forest - and me - from creatures that most people don't even dream about. I feel a pang in my chest the same time that _I have to see him _runs through my brain_._ So, I started my truck as fast as I could.

I had fifteen minutes between here and La Push. Hopefully, those minutes are enough to make it passed the border before Alice can see my future disappear and comes running after me.

I speed through the familiar winding roads take me closer and closer to Jacob Black. I'm not sure where exactly the boundary line is but I feel safer as I pass the first couple houses of the reservation.

A wave of calm washed over me as soon as the little red cabin was in my view. This place always felt like a second home. But as I pull up, nervousness starts to trickle into my head. But I sucked it up and hope out of the truck, nearly falling, and walked toward the door that had seen years of wear and tear. The door opens before I get the chance to knock and Billy is standing in the doorway.

"Hello Bella."

"Morning Billy. Is Jake here?" I asked hoping that he wouldn't slam the door in my face and tell me to leave - I mean I left Jake to save a vampire. I would be a fool to think that they would just brush it off and welcome me with open arms.

"He got back from patrol a little while ago and he's still sleeping."

"Oh. . . well, can you have him meet me at the beach? I really need to talk to him."

"Sure, sure." I smiled at the phrase that Jake says so much. I wonder if Jake got it from Billy or if Billy got it from Jake.

I thanked him and them made my way to our – mine and Jake's – spot on the beach. The driftwood tree where I first learned about the supernatural world. My life changed that day when Jake was telling me scary stories that he thought were just his tribe being superstitious.

I sat down on the sand and laid my back against the sturdy, bleach white driftwood tree with its gnarled trunks twisted around me. With y eyes closed, I let my mid wander. I thought about everything from Charlie and Renee to Jessica's birthday party next weekend that she went on and on about in lunch on Friday.

"Hey." I knew who the voice belonged to even before I opened my eyes.

"Hi." I tried to gather my courage to start. "Why didn't you pick up the phone when I called?"

"I already told you everything I had to say. You know how I feel: about _them, _about you . . . . about us_." _He paused for a moment and his voice became softer. "And I know how _you_ feel. But Bella, he left you. In the middle of the woods. And I know that you think him leaving to protect you was romantic or something. But its not. He made your decision for you." Jake was now looking right at me, reading my facial expressions.

"You left me once too." I pointed out.

"Not by choice. Sam ordered me not to see you. And if you remember I came to see you anyway. And even when you didn't see me, I was there. Protecting you."

"Okay. Where does that leave us? Because I still love him."

"I think that leaves us the same place we were before, friends." He said with a small slowly starting to form across his face.

For the rest of the afternoon, we talked about lighter subjects like : how we were, what's new, and how the pack was- which Jake informed me that Quil, Leah, and Seth were now phased. Leah phasing was a big shock o the pack because they didn't even know that girls could phase. But Quil, apparently, is very excited to be a wolf and to be in the 'in crowd'. Which made me laugh.

"You know, the pack would love to see you." Jacob said.

"Are they at Emily's?" I asked.

And then we were off to Emily's place. Which was like the Pack's meeting place. Jake tried to drive but I told him, "My truck, I drive." He just laughed and got into the passenger's side. The way there we sat in silence. But not the uncomfortable kind, but the type where neither person feels a need to fill the silence. And it was nice. When we pulled up I was bombarded with four pack members.

"Bella's here!" Jared shouted happily.

"Great, now maybe we can get a break from Jake's obsessive inner monologue." Paul answered. "Wish Bella would call."

"Wish Bella wouldn't call." Quil added.

"Maybe I should call Bella." Embry said.

"Maybe I should call Bella and hang up." This was Jared.

I can feel my cheeks burn with a blazing fire and I knew that they were red.

"Stop harassing Bella and get in here." Emily yelled from the house. To say I was grateful was an understatement.

For the rest of the afternoon, I sat with the pack around Emily's kitchen table watching the madness unfold around me. The boys were teasing each other and acting like little kids while scarfing down all of the food that Emily made – which was enough to feed a small army. Quil and Jake had started to wrestle in the living room and Sam – with the help of Paul – tossed them outside so they wouldn't break any of Emily's things. Sam, Paul, Jared and Quil all gathered in the yard to watch them. I would've been worried if I didn't hear their laughter and bets being taken.

It was 5:45 when I glanced up at the clock when I was talking to Emily.

"Crap. I forgot about Angela." Emily looked at me with confusion. "Angela is a friend of mine and I told her I would help her with her graduation announcements. I told her I would be there at six."

I thanked Emily and ran out the door toward my truck when I heard Jake yell for me, asking what I was doing. I was already starting the truck before I answered.

"I told a friend I would help her with something but I forgot about it until now. So I've gotta go. I'll see you later." I talked in a normal voice but I knew he could hear me with his supernatural hearing. I saw him wave goodbye and smiled in return.

After a few minutes of driving, there was car lights behind me. It was crazy. One minute, nothing, but the next, bam, there was a car behind me – no- more like following me. The Volvo was practically on my bumper.

"Really? You're going t follow me. Anger seeped through my voice and I was glad that he could hear me. I have every right to see my friend and if he doesn't like that, he can get over it.

Once I pulled up into Angela's driveway he just drove by. At least he didn't try to follow me in. That would have taken some explaining to Angela. I went up the steps to Angela's front porch and knocked.

**A/N: And that's it for chapter one! I hope you guys liked it. I will update as soon as I can. Happy Reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello everybody! Thank you so much for reading my story. I was so excited when I saw all the hits/follows I got. So thank you. I got a review pointing out that I forgot to mention imprinting like the book does. Don't worry, I will come in the story later, just not yet. Ready, Review, and Enjoy. Happy Reading!**

** Disclaimer: This is a story based on the Twilight Saga written by Stephanie Meyer. I do not own the saga, but I do own an awesome Nook Tablet.**

**P.S. The italics at the very bottom is a dream.**

I went up the steps to Angela's front porch and knocked.

Ben, Angela's boyfriend, opened the door for me. "Hey Bella." He said nonchalantly.

"Hey." I looked around Angela's house. Her walls were creamy white color with pictures covering the walls. Her stairs were directly across from the front door and at the top they turned to go in both directions of the hallway.

"Is that you Bella?" Angela called from somewhere upstairs.

"Yeah." I answered and then followed Ben up the stairs. We small-talked on the way. Apparently he was going with Mike to see some new action movie. I couldn't help from thinking about the last time I went to see an action movie. It was with Mike and Jake because everyone else canceled. It was Jake's last normal, teenager night.

Once we were up in Angela's room, Ben gave Angela a kiss goodbye and I looked away shyly. Her room was a lilac color with white furniture. Everything was so classy and simple.

Angela and I split the stack of announcement cards in half to do. She wasn't kidding when she said that she had hundreds to fill out. Angela and I sat on the bed with her address book in between us and we started to filling them out. Things were quite for a little bit. But it wasn't the uncomfortable silence because neither one of us were real talkative and we knew this about each other.

"Is everything okay?" She asked me tentatively. "I mean, you just seem a little tense."

"Yeah, it's just . . . never mind." How much can I really explain to her without revealing all the secrets that I have come to learn about since moving to Forks?

"Okay. But if you do want to talk about it, I'm a great listener." That's the thing I love about Angela: she doesn't push. And that's what I think gave me the urge to tell her – not everything, just the parts that are normal.

"It's just Edward. . . and Jacob Black – do you remember him?" I looked over at her and saw that she had stopped filling out her announcements and was looking at me.

"Tall, dark, and handsome?" She asked with a smile on her face.

"Yeah." I laughed. "Well, Edward is mad at me because I went over to see Jake today. But Jake is my best friend. I'm not going to stop hanging out with him and Edward doesn't understand. He thinks that Jake is dangerous – like a bad influence on me."

"I hate to break it to you Bella, but its not as complicated has you are making it to be. Edward is jealous of Jacob."

I looked at her skeptically.

"You started to be close to Jacob when Edward left, right?" I nodded. "Well, when he left, Jacob started filling the whole that Edward had left. And Edward knows that." I thought about this for a moment. "Not to mention the fact that Jacob looks at you like you are the last person on the planet."

"Edward is just acting like any normal guy would. So don't worry too much."

We didn't talk much after that, Angela just turned put the movie _50 First Dates_ into the DVD Player in her room and we watched that while we finished. The credits started playing right after we were done with the last one.

"Thank you so much for helping me tonight. You saved my hands from some serious pain." My hands were already hurting so I can't imagine how they would have felt if I had done all of them.

"No problem. Hey, are you going to Jessica's birthday party on Saturday?"

"I think so." She replied. "Apparently, she's having a fortune teller come."

"Oh jeez, that will be entertaining ." I rolled my eyes as I thought of Jessica and Lauren's reaction to what their fortune will be.

Angela laughed and thanked me, and then I was out the door and going to my truck. The entire drive home I kept glancing out the windows, looking for a pale white figure to be following me. I thought I saw something flash in the trees that surround my house as I pulled up, but I my mind could just be playing tricks on me.

When I walked in Charlie was sitting in his recliner watching some sports game.

"Hey Dad." I sat on the couch, delaying going upstairs because I knew he would be there. "How was your day?"

"Not bad. How bout' you? Did you have a nice day."

"I did. Mrs. Newton didn't need me at work today so I went to hang out with Jake and then I went over to Angela's house to help her fill out her graduation announcements."

"I knew you and Jake could work things out." He answered kind of smugly. I'm glad one of us was sure that my and Jake's relationship was salvageable, because for awhile, I wasn't so sure.

I had delayed the inevitable long enough."I'm pretty tired, so I'm going to do some homework and then go to bed. Night." I said as I climbed the stairs.

I wasn't surprised to see Edward sitting on my bed, looking like a statue, waiting for me to come upstairs. I closed my door and leaned against it.

"Hey." Nothing. I counted to thirty in my head, and he still said nothing. "So. . ." I trailed off. I mean what was I going to say? Sorry for going to see my best friend? Because I'm not. I'm glad I went to go see Jacob.

"Bella, do have any idea how close I was to going over the treaty line to get you? I don't know how many times I have to tell you how dangerous those mutts are."

"Don't call them that! They're good people who would _never_ hurt me. And besides, its _my_ life. That means that I am the one that gets to choose how I live it. Even if you don't agree with me, its still my call. So If I want to hang out with Jake, I will." What Jake said to me earlier popped into my head: _He made your decision for __you. _

_ "_I am just trying to doing what is best for you."

"I love you Edward and I know you love me too. But that doesn't mean that you know what is best for me. Because you don't."

Edward sighed. "If he hurt you I would have -"

"That's it. Get out." He looked shocked.

"Bella -" He started to walk toward me.

"You don't get to talk about my _friends_ like they are beneath you! And until you can understand that, you can go." I turned toward my dresser, busing myself with tiding up the little nicknacks on it. I made sure that I heard my window open and close before I turned around just to be sure that he left. Then I locked the window and closed the curtains, in case he decided to try and come in when I was sleeping.

I changed into my comfy sweats and crawled under my comforter before falling into a restless sleep.

_I was sitting in the sand on a beach. The tide was running up to were my knees lay before being it was pulled back into the ocean and repeating the process over and over again. The sun was shining and I could feel it soaking through my skin and throughout my body. The sun was setting and I couldn't help but feel like I was being watched._

_ I couldn't shake the feeling so I got up and walked down the beach line, hopefully away from whatever was lurking in the forest behind me._

_ "Would you stopped walking and let me catch up?" I jumped from being surprised before I turned around to find a women standing there. She had long black hair, dark colored skin, and looked to be in her forties. "Well, look at you! You've grown up so much!" She said excitedly._

_ "Do I know you?" I asked hesitantly. _

_ "No, you never got the chance to meet me. But I know you Bella." I felt like I should be scared but for some reason, I just couldn't. I felt safe actually. "I'm hear to help you."_

_ "Help me do what?"_

_ "To help you make a choice between your vampire and your werewolf." How did she know this? Is she a - "Before you ask, I'm not either. Or any other supernatural creature. I am a guide. I have been sent to help you choose between two great loves."_

_ "But I don't love Jake the way I love Edward."_

_ "I know." _

_ I waited for a moment, thinking she would elaborate but she didn't. So instead I moved._

_ "Are you going to be in my dreams every night?"_

_ "I will be here when I am called to be here, either by you or my people."_

_ "Who are your people?"_

_ "That, I'm afraid, I can't tell you." She started walking into the forest that was surrounding us._

_ "Wait!" I called. " I don't even know your name."_

_ "You will . . . in time. Now, go back to sleep. And remember, I'm here whenever __you need me._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I just wanted to thank everyone who has taken time out of their day to read my story. I really appreciate it. I also wanted to thank JacobB's Imprintee, Dark White Rose, megan39, shay205, and the guest reviewer that took the time to review my story. Thank you, thank you, thank you. When I read your reviews, it was like opening an early Christmas Present. I hope everyone enjoys this new chapter. Happy Reading!**

** Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight Saga, which is written by Stephanie Meyer. I may use lines from the book/movie and those lines aren't mine either. **

Beep. Beep. Beep. My alarm clock blared. As I turned over to go back to sleep, everything that happened in my dream came rushing back to me. I sat straight up in my bed.

The women, whose name I don't know, came to me in my dream and said that she was sent here to help me choose between my two great loves. When I asked her who had sent her she told me that she couldn't tell me who had sent her.

Great. So my boyfriend is a vampire, my best-friend is a werewolf, and now I have a women that comes and talks to me in my sleep. I mean what's next, is Jessica going to turn into a witch?

Should I tell somebody? Definitely not Charlie – he would send me to an insane asylum. But what about Edward? No, he would pass it off as being to stressed. Alice? No, she would tell Edward. Jake? No, he has enough on his plate. He would go out of his way to help me. And with him chasing after Victoria all the time, he wouldn't be get any sleep. So I guess its just me for now.

I groaned as I got out of bed. Why did my life have to be so complicated? After I got dressed for the day I went downstairs. There was a note on the kitchen counter:

**Bells, I went fishing with Steve from work. I should be back by this afternoon sometime. **

** -Dad**

** P.S. Jake wanted you to stop by tonight. He said something about a bonfire with some friends.**

As soon as I finished reading the note there was a knock on the front door. I opened it to find a very sulky-looking Edward.

"Can we talk, Bella." He pleaded.

"Come in." I opened the door for him and moved out of his way. I blinked and he was already on the opposite side of the room.

"I am sorry Bella. I didn't mean to upset you. I was only trying to protect you because I love you and I don't want you to get hurt."

"Okay." I sighed. "But you don't have to protect me from the pact. They were made to protect people Edward, not hurt them. And if by some small chance something does happen, Jake will be there."

"Accidents happened Be-"

"I know. That's why you left-because of an accident. But I trust them Edward. . . . Which is why I'm going over there for a bonfire tonight."

It was his turn to sigh. "Bella. . . I'm not going to decide things for you but they are very dangerous. You have seen what happened to Em-" I knew what he was going to say. He was going to say that I saw what happened to Emily's face. That I knew how dangerous they could be.

"Edward." I said warningly. "They are my friends, they're protecting me. They aren't going to hurt me. . . . And besides, Jake would never let anything happen to me." I trust Jake with my life, I thought. But there's no way I'm telling Edward that.

"Fine. Just be careful." I nodded. I knew that if I continued to argue, we would get no where.

After I ate breakfast, he took me over to his house. Emmett had just enough time when we got there to give me a bear hug before Alice stole me out of his grasp and told me how happy she was that Edward and I had made up. She put me down the same time that Carlisle and Esme came into the room and greeted me before leaving to go hunt.

For the rest of the morning I sat around the living room of the Cullen house and talked with Edward, Jasper, Alice, and Emmett. Rosalie never came in.

"I know you claim that the wolves are safe to be around, but please be safe." Edward said as he dropped me off, where I assumed to be the treaty line, and where Jake stood next to his motorcycle.

"I'm always safe around them." I countered as I climbed out of the Volvo and around the front of it where Edward was already standing. "Bye." I kissed him on his cheek and walked toward Jake.

The shiny car had already disappeared down the road before I reached Jacob.

"Hey Bells." He said as he pulled me into his warmth with a smile on his face. My smile. When Jake acted like this, it always reminded me of Jake before he phased. When he was an innocent, naïve kid that didn't know about the creatures that went bump in the night.

"Hey Jake." I breathed in his scent. He smelled like pine trees with a touch of honey.

He passed me my helmet. "Ready?" I nodded and we got on his bike and drove off.

I was standing next to the fire with Emily talking about a lasagna recipe she insisted that I try when I heard Jake yell for me from where he was standing on the other side of the yard. I excused myself from Emily and walked over to where he was standing with Quil, Embry, and another boy that reminded me of pre-werewolf Jacob.

"Bells, this is Seth Clearwater. Newest member of the pack." But, he seemed so young. He looks like he's only fourteen or fifteen.

Seth shrugged. "Newest, best-est, brightest-"

"And slowest." Quil added before he started wrestling with Seth.

My laugh was interrupted when Billy cleared his throat and I saw that everyone was starting to sit round the fire. Then the boys stopped goofing around and Jake was pulling me towards one of the logs the circled the fire pit. He sat on it and pulled me down with him so that my side was sitting flush against his side.

"This is my favorite part." He admitted into my ear.

After everybody had gotten comfortable, Billy started retelling the tribes' stories. And pretty soon I was engrossed into them.

He started by telling about Kaheleha, who is the first great Spirit Chief. He, and other Spirit Warriors, defended the tribe against a larger tribe that was attacking them for their land. Then came the story of the next great Spirit Chief, Taha Aki. He had been trapped in the Spirit World by Utlapa. He had also been the first Spirit Warrior to take the body of the wolf, which is how the pack came to be. The last story he told was the one about Taha Aki's third wife's sacrifice. A vampire had came into the village and killded off all of the warriors, except for Taha Aki. He was fighting the vampire but she had gotten the upper hand and was close to killing him. When his wife, whose name had not been recorded, saw this she made a decision. She drew the vampire's attention away long enough to distract her so that her husband could finish her off.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, the reality of everything sinking in.

Until Quil popped that bubble. "That's totally bad-ass!" Everybody chuckled after he said that.

_**(A/N: THE PART UNCERLINED COMES FROM THE ECLIPSE MOVIE!)**_

But then Billy went on. "Over time, our enemies have disappeared. But one remains, the Cold Ones. Our magic awakens when they're near we sense it now, we feel the threat in our blood. Something terrible is coming and we must all be ready. . . all of us."

After Billy was done telling legends everything went back to how it was before he started. Small groups started to form of people talking. Jake was talking to Quil and Embry about a part he needs for the Rabbit and I couldn't stop my mind from wandering from my dream.

The women seemed so familiar but she said that I never got the chance to meet her but she definitely knew me. And why would she help me choose between Edward and Jake? I've already chosen Edward . . . hadn't I? I mean, of course I know how Jake feels but I don't feel the same way. He's just Jacob.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I turned my head to see Jake staring at me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Quil and Embry talking with Sam about something.

"Oh, no, I'm fine. I just had a weird dream last night."

"Wanna talk about it?" He asked.

Yes, I do. I want to tell you so that I can make sense of it. "Not now. Maybe some other time." When your getting more than three hours of sleep- if that- every night.

"Okay. But if you do, I'm here."

I smiled. "I know you are." We just stared at each other for a moment – our eyes looking into the each others to piece together what the other one was thinking. "I' going to say goodbye to Emily and then can you take me home? I'm exhausted." He nodded. I told Emily goodbye and waved to everybody else before climbing into the Rabbit.

For the first few minutes of the drive we were quiet, just enjoying each others company. But then a question popped into my head.

"Hey Jake," He look over at me," why is Sam alpha? I mean, if your great-grandfather was the last alpha, then should you be alpha?"

"Technically I should be, but I never wanted to be a wolf."He sighed. "Besides, by the time I phased, Sam was already Alpha because he changed before everyone else – he knew the most about it."

"If you were supposed to be Alpha, then shouldn't you have phased first?" I asked curious.

"Yeah, but you phase when you want to or when you can't control your anger. And I was too happy top have room for any other emotion. But finally it was like I just had to phase. . . . Remember when we went to the movies to see that really bad action movie?" I nodded. "Well when I got home that night all it took was for my Dad to say that I looked funny when I walked in the door. I phased right there in the living room. Thankfully, Dad already knew that I was going to change and recognized the signs and got out of my way." He paused. " But he was still so close. I mean, I could of . . . . I could of-"

"You couldn't hurt him even if you wanted to, Jake. It's not who you are."

"But Sam-" He started.

"Isn't you. You're a good guy Jake, too good in fact. So don't even try to convince yourself otherwise."

Neither of us said anything else until we pulled up in front of my house. I went to open the door and get out, but Jake stopped me before I had the chance.

"Thanks."

"For what?" I asked confused.

"For not letting me forget who I was before I phased." He looked at me and I could see his gratitude in his eyes.

"I'm the one who should be thanking you. You've saved me so many times. From myself, vampires, and an evening with Mike Newton." We both smiled when I said this. "Goodnight Jake."

"Night Bells." I heard him say right before I closed the car door.

Charlie was in the kitchen putting the fish he caught in the freezer.

"Hey Dad. Did you have fun with Steve?" I asked.

"Yeah. What did you do today?"

"This morning I went to the Cullen's place and then I went to the bonfire with Jake."

"Did ya have fun?"

"Ya, I did. I ate, talked to the guys and Emily- Sam Uley's fiance- and Billy told the tribe legends."

I helped Charlie finish putting the rest of the fish away and then we both went up to bed.

I was already asleep before my head hit the pillow.

**A/N: I know that I already have an author's note at the beginning of the chapter but I just wanted to say that my thoughts and prayers go out to the friends and ****family of everyone who has been effected by the school shooting. And I know that it may not help but listen to the song ****Tomorrow Will Be Kinder By. The Secret Sisters.**** It gave me some hope that things will get a little bit better and I hope it will do the same for you.**


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